L Brands Crafts New High - Analyst Blog

By: Zacks.com

Posted: 8/14/2013 3:31:00 PM

Referenced Stocks: ADS;CMI;KORS;LTD

Shares of
L Brands, Inc.
(
LTD
) touched a new 52-week high of $61.36 on Tuesday, Aug 13. The
stock has been performing well, driven by the company's
better-than-expected comparable-store sales and upgraded guidance
for second-quarter fiscal 2013. This specialty retailer has
amassed a year-to-date return of 31.1%.

The average volume of shares traded over the last 3 months was
approximately 2,562K. Moreover, the company currently trades at a
forward P/E of 19.3x, a 21.4% premium to the peer group average
of 15.9x. The last traded price is 12.5% above the Zacks
Consensus average analyst price target of $54.55. Additionally,
the company's long-term estimated EPS growth rate is 11.5%.

Investors are optimistic about this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock as
it posted comps of 3% for the four-week period ended Aug 3, 2013
and performed better than analysts' expectations. This specialty
retailer of women's innerwear and other apparel, beauty and
personal care products witnessed a 4.4% rise in net sales to
$678.4 million from $649.8 million in the prior-year period.

Buoyed by stronger-than-anticipated comps results, management now
expects second-quarter fiscal 2013 earnings to come in at 60
cents per share, up from the range of 50-55 cents projected
earlier. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter
matches with the company's upgraded guidance.

The company's history of positive earnings surprises also makes
investors upbeat on the stock. We observe that L Brands has
beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the past 10 quarters by an
average of 3.1%.

Going forward, we believe that with its operational efficiencies,
new and innovative collection, and upcoming new product launches,
L Brands remains well positioned to generate healthy sales. The
company commands a market leading position in the lingerie,
personal care, and beauty segments. The company's exclusive
assortments remain popular among consumers and set it apart from
peers.